Similar to USDA MyPlate: Endurance Plate Targets Athletes

Clearfield, PA -- (SBWIRE) -- 05/11/2012 -- For just over a century now the United States Department of Agriculture has been publishing food guides with the pyramid, multi-tiered food group scheme being among the most popular over the years. Even so, the latest revised pyramid scheme has been scrapped in recent years to make way for MyPlate, a new plan promoted by Michelle Obama.

MyPlate has garnered wide acceptance because it's easier to understand and implement. This is unlike the most recent pyramid diagram which had been criticized as being too technical. MyPlate is also being touted by nutritionists as being the more logical of the two.

It does, however, have one thing in common with every USDA recommended food nutrition guide that's come and gone over the years. That is that this new guide just like any other is a one-size-fits-all plan that was designed on the assumption that all people have the same dietary requirements.

When it comes to athletes though, this just isn't the case, so now a new non-governmental nutritional plan as been launched that uses the same simple-to-understand MyPlate schematic. It is a plan that finally accounts for the specific needs of endurance athletes.

So to find out more about Endurance Athlete Plate and why it's starting to generate the buzz in athletic circles that it is, Levi Bloom, CEO of enduranceplate.com was contacted for a recent phone interview and what he had to say was rather intriguing.

He said, "An endurance athlete, just like a performance vehicle that runs on special high-octane fuel has different nutritional requirements than the average person. Expecting top performance from a standard nutrition plan would be like a Formula One race car driver gassing up on regular unleaded down at the local gas station. Our plan is similar to MyPlate in then it's easy to understand and implement, but still different in several crucial ways. One major difference for instance, is that it deals with the different types of foods including sports drinks and energy bars that can be found in an athlete's refrigerator and kitchen cupboards."

He also made it clear that his Endurance Athlete Plate nutritional guide is in no way connected to or sanctioned by the US Department of Agriculture (USDA). He pointed out that USDA plans of this sort have come and gone over the decades, as have the administrations that promoted them.

He feels that even if the popularity of MyPlate that is endorsed by Michelle Obama fades when a new president is voted in, his plan has staying power. Political trends come and go, but the unique nutritional needs of endurance athletes, particularly those who are interested in maximizing their performance will remain.

On a final note; while there are other similar nutritional guides of this genre such as Healthy Eating Plate that are promoted by Harvard University, as of date Mr. Bloom says that this is the only guide of this type specifically designed for athletes.